Reading Reflection No. 1 Elon Musk

You read about an entrepreneur:

I really enjoyed learning more about Elon Musk. I’ve always seen him as a fascinating entrepreneur and probably one of the most notable of our time. Believe it or not, one of the things that surprise me the most was his involvement in PayPal. I had no idea that he was involved with it before it officially became PayPal, and that it provided financial means for him to invest in SpaceX and Tesla. What I admire most about him are his tenacity and resiliency. He was very steadfast in his entrepreneurial/business convictions and was able to make through the financial crisis of 2008. The thing that I least admire about him is that he seems to be a little arrogant sometimes. It seems like this come sometimes be a result of his confidence and grit, which I guess is a good thing for him. Elon did encounter adversity, especially during the financial crisis of 2008. He was able to get through it by securing financing for Tesla and keep SpaceX running by landing a government contract. I think this was a result of the grit and persistence that I mentioned earlier.

What competencies did you notice the entrepreneur exhibit?

Some of the core competencies that I believe Elon has as an entrepreneur are intelligence, ingenuity, grit, and the ability to manage people well. I think all of these things contribute to the success he’s had with his business endeavors.  

Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing.

I was a little confused when reading about SpaceX because I didn’t know much about it before this. I knew that it was part of Elon’s business, but I didn’t think it was successful at all. I really only knew him for Tesla.

If you were to ask two questions to the entrepreneur, what would you say? Why?

I would ask: Did you ever feel like giving up? If so, what made you keep going? I would also ask: Do you think you would’ve had the same opportunities if you didn’t attend an Ivy League school? I would ask them the first question because I would like to know what kept him going and motivated him to not give up. The second question is because of many big-name entrepreneurs attending top tier schools. I would like to know if he felt that this afforded him opportunities he wouldn’t have had otherwise. Not just the education itself, but also through networking and connections.   

For fun: what do you think the entrepreneur's opinion was of hard work? Do you share that opinion?

I would think Elon’s opinion of hard work is that it’s necessary to succeed. He seems like the type of person that does whatever it takes to make sure things get done. Putting it whatever amount of effort is required to be successful. I definitely agree with that opinion. I think that no matter what it is you want to achieve in life, you need to make sure you have a good work ethic.